Skunks and Roses
by BrightBlocks42
Summary: Follow the lives of two WindClan cats: Skunkkit and Rosekit. This story is a slice of life story that takes place in the Lake Territory long after Firestar's time. If you would like your own OCs in this story, PM me or mention them in a review. "Life's no fun if you can't make fun of it."
1. Cat Chart

**Wind Clan**

Leader

Thornstar – A very old, dark brown tom with only one life left.

Deputy

Barrenfoot – A light brown tom with not a single stripe or spot on his pelt.

Medicine Cat

Rainpelt – A grey she-cat with a long, drooping pelt.

 **Apprentice-** Blackpaw

Warriors

Brighteye – A light yellow tome with bright blue eyes.

Specklefoot – A blond she-cat with small black spots.

 **Apprentice-** Rabbitpaw

Pinestripe – A tan tom with dark brown stripes.

 **Apprentice-** Antpaw

Adderheart – A grey and black spotted tom.

Hollowclaw – A larger-than-average brown tom with a large appetite.

Sunpelt – An orange-yellow she-cat with wavy stripes on her body.

Apprentices

Rabbitpaw – A grey she-cat with yellow eyes.

Antpaw – A black tom who is slightly smaller than average.

Blackpaw – A smart, white tom with a black snout.

Queens

Dawnfeather – A very beautiful she cat with a pink-orange coat.

Elders

Whitefur – Thornstar's mate with a white coat.

Burrcoat – A very old tom with a brown, rough coat.

Oakfur – A younger (relatively speaking) brown-furred elder with poor vision.

 **ThunderClan**

Leader

Sparrowstar – A brown and black striped tom with ruffled fur.

Deputy

Polarfrost* – Cream and white tabby tom with dark blue eyes.

Medicine Cat

Warriors

Toadheart* – Black and grey tom with amber eyes.

Hawkstrike* – Brown she-cat with black ears and tail.

Apprentices

Finchpaw* - Brown-red she-cat with blue eyes.

Queens

Elders

 **RiverClan**

Leader

Ripplestar – A yellow she-cat with long, light fur.

Deputy

Leaffur* – Brown she-cat with fur that often clumps up.

Medicine Cat

Warriors

Watereye* – A black tom with blue eyes.

Mudpelt* – Dark brown tom with green eyes.

 **Apprentice –** Robinpaw

Snowclaw** - A large, white tome with amber eyes.

Iceleaf** - A white she-cat with green eyes.

Apprentices

Robinpaw* - Brown-red tom with amber eyes.

Queens

Mistheart** – A silver tabby she-cat with green eyes.

 **Kits – Dewkit, Ravenkit**

Elders

 **ShadowClan**

Leader

Greystar – A strong, grey she-cat with strange, dark-grey stripes on her face.

Deputy

Medicine Cat

Rosepetal* – Red she-cat with green eyes.

Warriors

Apprentices

Queens

Elders

Snapjaw* – Black she-cat with a bobtail.

 **Cats Outside the Clans**

Carrot – An orange-brown she-cat who lives near the barn.

Bud – A light orange-brown rogue tom with gold eyes.

Blue – A dark brown rogue tom with blue eyes.

Sam – An orange-brown rogue tom with blue eyes.

 _*These cats were suggested by NightmareTheFoxWitch_

 _**These cats were suggested by Featherfall's Lullaby_


	2. Chapter 1

Barrenfoot ducked his head as he stepped under the gorse bush into the nursery. Dawnfeather lay on the floor alone, panting. Her eyes were wide open and bloodshot. She hadn't noticed Barrenfoot enter; her sight was locked on the edge of the bush.

Barrenfoot's heart started to race. He poked his head out and called to the nearest cat, a young warrior with a pale golden coat. "Brighteye! Go get Rainpelt! Dawnfeather needs help!"

Brighteye's ears perked up, and then flattened. He scrambled to his feet and frantically ran into the medicine cat's crevice. Barrenfoot turned back into the nursery and hopped to Dawnfeather's side. He nuzzled her neck, trying to add comfort. Her eyes closed and her breathing slowed, but she was still in distress.

The two of them lay together until Rainpelt came into the nursery. "Dawnfeather, are you all right?" Rainpelt said. Her voice was steady, if rushed, and she moved calmly.

Dawnfeather groaned a noise that Brighteye, who stood at the entrance of the nursery, had never heard a cat make before. "They're coming," she gasped.

Rainpelt nodded and padded towards her. "Barrenfoot, I'm going to need you to keep her calm. Brighteye," Rainpelt turned to address the warrior. "You might not want to see this." Brighteye agreed with a meow and left. Rainpelt saw his shadow sit in front of the nursery. She rolled her eyes. "That's not really that far enough," she muttered. "But whatever."

Dawnfeather's breathing had intensified again. She took violent gulps whenever she could, and her entire body shook as if it were covered in a freezing fire. Barrenfoot faced Rainpelt. He was near tears, and he voice wavered slightly when he said, "Please, you need to help her! She's in pain."

"They're… coming…" Dawnfeather panted. Her eyelids closed tightly and her face scrunched up. Barrenfoot leaned over to lick her cheek. She loosened slightly, and then tensed up again.

Rainpelt stepped forward. "Dawnfeather, breathe, baby. Everything's going to be okay." Dawnfeather screamed.

Brighteye decided he'd heard enough. He sprinted away to the elder's burrow, where he knew Thornstar was talking with Whitefur, his mate. He passed some clanmates as he ran, but he didn't bother to acknowledge them. "What's wrong?" he heard one cat say, but he rushed right past.

At the elder's den, he could hear quiet conversation. He didn't bother to make any introduction other than, "Thornstar, it's Brighteye," as he rushed in. He knew he had the attention of all the cats in the room, except for Burrcoat, who was asleep. Thornstar showed slight concern in his expression.

"What is it, Brighteye?" Thornstar asked.

"Something wrong?" Whitefur said. "Is it Dawnfeather?"

Brighteye nodded eagerly. "Yeah. How'd you know?"

"She's been expecting kits for a while now," Whitefur replied.

"So what is it?" said Thornstar with a hint of impatience. "Is she hurt? Ill?"

"No," Brighteye said. "They're coming."

Thornstar and Whitefur sprung to their feet and bolted out of the burrow, Brighteye close behind. Brighteye, who had never gotten WindClan's great running speed, began to fall behind Thornstar. He entered the gorse bush after Whitefur, whose old legs were worn of a lifetime of running.

When his head poked through the branches and leaves, he saw two kits snuggled up against Dawnfeather's belly, with their mother gazing contently down at them. Barrenfoot lay nearby, his chin jutting out in pride. Rainpelt seemed as calm as ever, licking the kittens clean. Thornstar's worn face showed pure joy, as if this moment was the moment he'd been waiting for his whole life.

As Brighteye stepped closer, however, he noticed a deep sadness that was covered up on Barrenfoot and Dawnfeather's faces. He couldn't understand why they would be sad. A new litter of kits was always a cause for celebration.

"Oh!" Whitefur screamed, directly in Brighteye's ear. He winced and almost hissed, then remembered who this was. He turned his head to where she had been looking and nearly cried.

Laying in the dirt, lifeless and cold, sat the tiniest kit Brighteye had ever seen. Its light grey pelt was still covered in blood, and its body was sprawled in an awkward way.

"Oh no," Thornstar murmured.

Rainpelt looked to the ground with regret. "She was the runt of the litter. She wasn't ready when her sisters were, so she didn't make it."

Whitefur pawed over to the stiff kit and lightly cried, grieving for such an unfair death. Brighteye lowered his ears and laid his head on his front feet.

"I'm so sorry, Dawnfeather," Thornstar said with deep remorse.

Dawnfeather tried to smile and shook her head. "It's fine. I still have these two to care for." She nodded to the kits on her belly.

"But it must be so hard for you," Brighteye said. "She didn't even get a chance!"

"Brighteye…" Rainpelt growled.

Brighteye saw that Dawnfeather was near crying and ducked his head. "Sorry," he mewed.

"It's fine, Brighteye," Barrenfoot said. "We can mourn for her later. I just think it's sad that she must go to StarClan unnamed."

"Not necessarily. There is an old ritual for kits who don't make it so I can give them a name as they enter the stars."

"Really?" Barrenfoot said hopefully.

"No, I just made it up right now," Thornstar joked. "Yes, of course, there is. This isn't the first time a kit has died at birth."

He sat next to his mate in front of the kit. "StarClan, you have taken this life before it could even receive a name. I give this kit a name so she may be remembered still. Please accept her and her title, and care for her in the best way possible. Now, with your consent, I give this kit the name Shimmerkit."

With this, he reached down and licked the cat on the forehead. He spat suddenly to get the taste of blood out of his mouth. Whitefur sighed at her mate.

"That's completely disrespectful," she said. "And you didn't even say the right words."

"I'm an old cat. I forget things," Thornstar replied. "I'm sure they got the idea. They're smart."

"Shouldn't you be naming the other kits now?" Whitefur said, pointing her nose to the two kittens.

Thornstar observed the kits closely. The two of them looked extremely similar. Apart from one of them having a white ring around her neck and more distinctly light stripes, they looked the same. The both had white underbellies with black and brown stripes covering their bodies.

Thornstar reached in to sniff one of the cats, the one with the white ring. "Whew! This one's a stinker!" he exclaimed well-meaningly. Dawnfeather laughed lightly, but Barrenfoot kept a straight face.

"Because of her stink and the white stripe down her back, this kit's name is Skunkkit."

"Skunkkit? What kind of name is-" Barrenfoot started.

"I think it's a fine name," Dawnfeather said.

"I'm not questioning you, Thornstar, but a skunk's only defense is stink!"

"And that stink keeps it safer than any rabbit," Dawnfeather reasoned.

Barrenfoot blinked and looked away thoughtfully. "I suppose."

Thornstar realized that his joking manner was starting to get out hand. "And her sister, whose tiny claws remind me of thorns, my own name, shall be called Rosekit."

"That's a beautiful name," Dawnfeather said. Brighteye and Rainpelt purred agreement.

Thornstar breathed in relief. "Right. I'll go to Tallrock to announce the good news and the bad news." He turned around and left the nursery with Whitefur and Rainpelt.

"Barrenfoot," Brighteye said. "Since I already know the news, would you mind if I stayed here to watch over the kittens with you?"

"Not at all," Dawnfeather answered. Barrenfoot nodded agreement.

"First, I'd like it if you could find some leaves of some sort to cover Shimmerkit," Barrenfoot said. Brighteye glanced at the dead kit and meowed agreement. He left the two alone to cuddle with their newborn kits and headed to the nearest bush. Grabbing a few of the leafiest branches, he ran back to the nursery and carefully covered the kit. Barrenfoot grinned and leaned back to his kittens.

Dawnfeather, exhausted from everything, fell straight asleep with her head nuzzled against Skunkkit.

Brighteye lay down next the entrance as if on guard and watched the tiny kits sleep peacefully.


	3. Chapter 2

Brighteye felt a foot land on his cheek. He scrambled up with a jolt.

"Oh! Sorry, Brighteye. I didn't realize you were, er, standing guard." It was Oakfur, one of the younger elders. His vision had started to fail earlier than most cats, so he'd joined the elders a bit soon.

"It's okay," Brighteye meowed. "I wasn't really guarding. I just wanted to watch the kits." He licked the back of his foot to wash his cheek.

"I didn't know they were on the insides of your eyelids," Burrcoat said sarcastically as he stepped into the gorse bush.

"Did you come to see the kits?" Dawnfeather asked the elders.

Oakfur said, "Yes, but we also came to get, uh…"

"We need to get Shimmerkit for the burial grounds," Whitefur meowed as she entered. Her eyes looked into Dawnfeather's with sadness and understanding. Dawnfeather met her gaze strongly, nodding her head that she was okay.

"Well, these little bundles of joy are just adorable," Burrcoat purred.

"How adorable?" Oakfur asked. "All I can see are little black and brown blurs.

"Use your imagination," said Burrcoat.

Oakfur closed his eyes and scrunched up his face. He smiled as if he could see the kits perfectly. "Aw! They're so cute!"

Dawnfeather purred. Whitefur laughed quietly.

The three elders pawed towards the dead kit and swept off the branches and leaves.

"Oh no," Burrcoat murmured. He lowered his head and tried to lick off the dried blood. Oakfur reached down and joined him.

"Brighteye, could you help us put her on Burrcoat and my backs?" Whitefur asked.

"Oh, don't put her on my back. I don't want her to be stuck on my bristly old fur," Burrcoat said.

"She can't feel, anyway, Burrcoat," said Whitefur. "You just don't want to carry her, lazy."

Burrcoat growled good-heartedly and continued to lick the kit.

When the cat was so clean that she shined dimly, Brighteye helped lift her up onto Whitefur's back with his nose. When the kit was secure on Whitefur and Burrcoat's backs, the three elders left the nursery.

"I'll be back to play with the kittens later!" Oakfur called behind him.

Barrenfoot lay down next to Dawnfeather and they started to purr with their sleeping kittens between them. Brighteye interrupted them with a little cough.

"Barrenfoot, it's just about time to set up the night patrols. Shouldn't you go organize the warriors?"

Barrenfoot stretched with a little groan. "Brighteye, I really want to stay here with my family. Do you think you could organize the patrols? Tell them you have my permission."

Brighteye was taken by surprise, but he'd been hoping for this chance since he first became a warrior. He heart started to race with nervousness, but he knew that cats of the clan well, and he knew he had the planning skills to sort them out. "You can count on me, Barrenfoot," Brighteye said. He bolted out of the nursery, then recollected himself and walked slowly to Tallrock.

"That got rid of him," Barrenfoot said. Dawnfeather laughed. The family snuggled together and fell asleep once more.


	4. Chapter 3

Barrenfoot sat on top of Tallrock as cats crawled out of their sleeping spots to gather in front of them. No cat was truly awake yet. In the bright pink light of the rising sun, they all stretched and yawned while Barrenfoot waited patiently. When the cats finally sat still, Barrenfoot called out to them all.

"Tonight is the Gathering. Thornstar has asked me to choose cats to come with us."

He listed off a few cats, ranging from new apprentices to elders like Whitefur. "Rabbitpaw, Whitefur, Specklefoot, Pinestripe, Brighteye, Antpaw, and Hollowclaw, along with Thornstar, Rainpelt, Blackpaw, and myself. That leaves the rest of you for the night patrols, which I'll organize later."

The cats chatted with each other. A few grumbled that this wasn't worth getting up for. Rabbitpaw and Antpaw had wide grins on their faces and they were play-fighting. Barrenfoot smiled at them. _"They're pretty excited for their first Gathering,"_ he thought. He chuckled lightly.

"Barrenfoot!" a voice called from below. Barrenfoot looked down and saw Hollowclaw with a few other clanmates. "You ready for morning patrol?" Hollowclaw asked.

"I'll be right there! You start heading out. I'll catch up."

"K!" the patrol started to walk out of the camp.

Barrenfoot took one last look at the rising sun. The sky was cloudless, which Barrenfoot hoped was a sign from StarClan that the Gathering would go without a fight. He hopped down from Tallrock and sprinted to join the morning patrol.

* * *

"Well, Thornstar, let's start with you. How has your clan been this past moon," Greystar, ShadowClan's' leader, said. She smiled warmly and nodded to Thornstar to start.

Thornstar stepped up to the edge of his pine branch, chuckled to himself for no apparent reason, and began.

"Our clan has great news. Our deputy, Barrenfoot, and his mate, Dawnfeather, have recently had a new litter of kits!"

"Aw! That's great news!" exclaimed Ripplestar, RiverClan's leader. "What are their names?"

"Skunkkit and Rosekit," said Thornstar.

"Skunkkit?" said Greystar. "What kind of name is that?"

"Barrenfoot and Dawnfeather said it best themselves. A skunk's only defense is stink, but that stink keeps it safer than any rabbit."

The leaders thought about it and nodded their heads.

"You know, that really is good reasoning," said Greystar.

"I know, right?" said Thornstar. "However, I also have bad news to go with this great news. One of the kits didn't make it."

Ripplestar gasped, "Oh no!"

"She was the runt of the litter, and she wasn't ready to enter the big world. I sent her to StarClan with the name Shimmerkit."

"That's so sad!" said Sparrowstar, ThunderClan's leader. "But that's a great name."

"A quick moment of silence for Shimmerkit!" called Greystar.

The Gathering was completely for a few seconds. Nothing could be heard but the quiet rustling of prey in the trees. It seemed everyone was praying to StarClan for Shimmerkit.

"Okay, moment over!" Greystar yowled. "Thornstar, do you have any other news?"

"No, we've had a peaceful moon. Prey is plentiful this Greenleaf, and we've had no invasions."

"Speak for yourself," said Sparrowstar. "We found a few RiverClan cats hunting in our section of the lake!"

A few cats in the crowd gasped, and a couple cocked their heads in confusion.

Ripplestar said, "Sparrowstar, I can assure you, when I was told that these cats had hunted outside of the territory, I punished them with no meals for a day. However, I didn't realize that they'd gotten all the way to ThunderClan territory!"

"How could they have?" Greystar asked. "I'm certain that no RiverClan cats passed through our territory, and the only other ways were to go all the way through WindClan's or to swim the entire lake!"

"But how could they get through WindClan territory? We've had patrols down that way all the time, and that distance is a really long way to go without getting caught," said Thornstar. "My deputy made sure of this."

Brighteye's eyes widened in intense fear and he turned to look at Barrenfoot, only to be met with the same expression. Barrenfoot tried to mouth words to Brighteye, but he had no idea what Barrenfoot was trying to say. He shook his head and mouthed, "I have no idea what you're saying," back. Barrenfoot made an audible groan.

"Barrenfoot, do you have something to say?" asked Thornstar.

Barrenfoot took in a deep breath and let it out very slowly. He tensed up his shoulders and said, "I think I know the problem. When my kits were born, I desperately wanted to stay with them and help Dawnfeather care for them. I knew that somebody had to set up the night patrols, so I sent Brighteye, who I knew was smart enough to manage the task."

"How 'desperately' did you want to stay with your kits?" asked Sparrowstar.

"Have you ever had kits, Sparrowstar?" said Barrenfoot.

"No, I have not."

"Then I'm afraid you wouldn't understand."

Sparrowstar started a retort when Ripplestar interrupted. "Brighteye, where are you?"

Brighteye stood up slowly, his legs shaking and his ears laid back in fear.

"Right here!" he yowled as loudly as he could, which didn't turn out to be very loud.

"Tell me the patrols you organized that night."

"Well, I got Hollowclaw a-"

"Not names. I just need numbers and places."

Brighteye gulped. "I sent three cats to the ThunderClan border from the Moonpool to the lake, three cats to check out the Horseplace and the Thunderpath, and two cats to simply walk inside the territory."

"Did you send a patrol along the lake?"

"No, I didn't think any cats would be there."

"And yet you sent a patrol to just walk around the territory."

Brighteye had no answer.

"Ripplestar, it's not Brighteye's fault," called Barrenfoot. "It's my fault for letting a cat who had no experience with planning patrols."

"Yep, pretty much," said Thornstar. Greystar snickered.

"However, I have to ask," said Barrenfoot. "Did anything bad come out of this whole event?"

The leaders looked at each other. "I suppose not," said Sparrowstar.

"Then should we fight over it?"

"I guess not."

"Okay then," Barrenfoot breathed. Brighteye gave a sigh of relief. _"That was scary,"_ Brighteye thought. _"Maybe I shouldn't plan patrols again for a while."_


	5. Chapter 4

**And then the kits did nothing interesting for about two moons. Thornstar did this, Brighteye did that, Barrenfoot ate food, etc. This story is all about these two kits, so let's skip ahead to them as two-moon-olds, just starting to explore the camp grounds.**

 **Also, in case you were wondering, this is in real time. The kits were born April 29, 2016, and I'm skipping ahead to June 24, 2016. (If you're a Harry Potter fan, this is Voldemort's 16** **th** **re-birthday, and the day after Dudley's birthday!) They become a moon older every fourth Friday, on waxing half-moons, so they'll be apprentices on October 13. Just little tidbits of info!**

"Mo-om! Skunkkit's attacking me!"

Dawnfeather watched her kits wrestle each other in the dirt. Skunkkit lay on top of Rosekit, biting her ear with sharp teeth.

"You attack Skunkkit all the time, and she doesn't complain. Why should I stop her now?" said Dawnfeather.

"Because I'm losing now!" yowled Rosekit. She started to rapidly kick Skunkkit with her hind legs until she fell off. Rosekit scrambled to her feet and bolted away, with Skunkkit hot on her tail.

Barrenfoot laughed softly. "Should we intervene?" he asked Dawnfeather.

"No, they need the practice. How else will they run fast enough to catch rabbits?"

"They seem kind of cooped up in here, though. Could we let them explore the camp now?"

"Well, I brought them to come see Rainpelt in her den when she wasn't busy, and we walked around a bit, but I'm afraid to let them near that cliff."

"The one with Tallrock and the other boulders? They'd be fine. I go on that cliff every day, and I'm fine."

"Yes, but you're a grown warrior. They're only kittens! If they fall without meaning to, or worse, if they jump, they might not have the strength to recover from the impact!"

"Do you think they will, though? They're pretty smart."

"Yes, but they're also clumsy." At that moment, Skunkkit charged for Rosekit, only to miss and hit the trunk of the gorse bush.

Dawnfeather looked at Barrenfoot.

"Point taken," he said. "Still, you could let them explore the rest of the camp."

Dawnfeather nodded thoughtfully. "I suppose so. I'd have to keep my eye on both of them at the same time, though, and I can't do that."

"Then take Brighteye. I get another cat to fill in for him on the hunting trip."

"But he hasn't been on a hunting trip for a while!"

"And for good reason," Barrenfoot said humorously. "He's only caught one rabbit in his life!" He laughed until he realized Dawnfeather didn't think it was very funny. He cleared his throat awkwardly and watched the kits again.

They lay still for a few seconds while the kits wrestled with a branch of the gorse bush. Finally, Barrenfoot said, "So, will you take Brighteye anyway? The kits really need the experience."

"I guess I will," Dawnfeather sighed.

"Great! I'll go get him, and then I'll be on the hunting patrol."

"What? You're not going to help me?"

"I'm sorry, but the clan comes first."

"Then why did you just convince me to let the kits out?"

"Because they need it. Bye!" Barrenfoot strode out of the gorse bush without looking back.

Dawnfeather shook her head. _"Boys and their logic,"_ she thought.

She called the kits over with a quick meow. When they didn't come, she hopped over to them and picked up Rosekit by the scruff of her neck. "Hey!" yowled Rosekit. Dawnfeather carried her over their nest and told her to stay. Rosekit scowled but remained in the nest. Dawnfeather brought over Skunkkit and sat her next to Rosekit.

"Barrenfoot and I decided to let you out to explore more of the camp."

"Yes!" whispered Skunkkit.

"However, I want you to know that you're not allowed on the cliff. If you fall, you could get seriously hurt!"

"Or you could die!" shouted Rosekit.

Dawnfeather wanted to tell her that it wouldn't be that bad, but she decided to use fear to her advantage. "Yes, you actually could."

"Called it!" said Rosekit. Skunkkit rolled her eyes.

"I'll show you the elders' den and the boundaries of our camp, but we won't go any farther."

"Will Dad be with us?" asked Skunkkit.

"No, he has a hunting patrol, so Brighteye's going to play with us instead."

"Yay! Brighteye!" the kits shouted. Brighteye had stopped by almost daily for the past two moons, and the three had become quite attached.

"He's going to make sure you stay safe. Don't make him angry, or you'll make me angry."

"Brighteye doesn't get angry," said Rosekit. "You get angry, and then you scream at us and make us sad."

Dawnfeather groaned. "StarClan help me."

A few branches rustled at the entrance of the nursery.

"It's StarClan! Yay!" shouted Rosekit.

"No it isn't, dumby! It's Brighteye," said Skunkkit.

Brighteye stepped through the entrance and said, "Barrenfoot said you wanted me to help watch the kits." He tried to act serious, but he was actually ecstatic that he'd gotten to skip the hunting patrol to play with the kits.

"I'm going to show them around the camp. They need to know WindClan better if they're going to be smart warriors," said Dawnfeather.

"We're already smart warriors," said Rosekit. "I've caught the snake attached to my butt a bunch of times."

"That's your tail, Rosekit," said Dawnfeather.

"Ohhh…"

Brighteye couldn't keep the laughter inside of him and his eyes started to tear up. Dawnfeather saw him and sighed. "Let's get this over with."

With Brighteye in the back, Dawnfeather led the kits out of the nursery and towards the elders' den. They're heads turned to everything that passed by, and their eyes moved rapidly, trying to absorb it all. A few times, they tried to escape, but Brighteye nudged them back to their mother.

At the elders' den, Dawnfeather pushed the kits inside and then turned to Brighteye.

"I need you go to do something real quick," she whispered. "You know the cliff with Tallrock in front of it? I need you to go cover up the entrance to it with some sticks."

"Sure!" said Brighteye. He sprinted away to go find some strong sticks.

In the elders' den, the kits were exploring everywhere. Whitefur, Oakfur, and Burrcoat were all lying down, looking at the kits with smiles.

"They've grown up so much!" said Whitefur warmly.

"Really?" said Oakfur. "I was gonna say that they have changed a bit!"

"Well, how would you know, you blind old mole?" joked Whitefur.

Dawnfeather purred and lay down next to the entrance. _"I've gotta give Brighteye enough time to make a strong barrier,"_ she thought. "So, Oakfur, would you tell the kits a story?"

"Story!" said Rosekit. The kits rushed up to Oakfur and sat in front of him, eager looks on their faces.

"Hmm…" said Oakfur. "I suppose I could tell them about my namesake."

"Ooh, yeah. Tell us about him!" said Rosekit. She scrunched up her nose in thought. "What's a namesake?"

"It's a cat who has the same name as someone else," said Whitefur.

"This Oakfur was a ShadowClan cat who lived during the time of Firestar," said Oakfur.

"Firestar? Who's that?" asked Rosekit.

"One of the greatest warriors who ever lived. He was born a kittypet, but he grew up to be one of ThunderClan's strongest leaders."

"Whoa…" said the kits.

"He once met Firestar at a Gathering, when Firestar was only a young warrior."

"What about Oakfur? Was he a great warrior?" asked Skunkkit.

"Oh, yes. I've heard a few stories about him from ShadowClan cats at Gatherings. In fact," he started to laugh. "I have a comical story about when he was just a kit."

"Tell us! Tell us!" shouted Rosekit.

"Calm down, Rosekit," said Dawnfeather.

"It's fine. Her energy gives my old bones life again," said Oakfur.

"Speak for yourself," grumbled Burrcoat.

"When Oakfur was still Oakkit, only two moons older than you, he decided that he wanted to prove he was the bravest cat of all time. To prove it, he wanted to scare one of the older warriors.

"He hid inside the fresh-kill pile and waited for a cat to come and pick up a meal so he could jump out and scare them. However, the medicine cat, Yellowfang, noticed his tail waving back and forth from the pile. She crept up behind him, watching the tail swing side to side. Oakkit was still watching for cats in the front, so he didn't notice her crawling up behind him.

"Yellowfang reached down and pinned the tail down with her foot. 'Oh, this piece of fresh-kill looks delicious! I wonder who caught it!' she said. Oakkit didn't understand that she was only joking, so he started to panic. Yellowfang picked him up by the scruff of his neck and started to carry him to her den. Oakkit started to yell, "I'm not fresh-kill! Don't eat me!" until they finally reached the den and Yellowfang put him down again.

"'Are you sure? You look very tasty to me!' said Yellowfang. 'No, I'm not! I'm a cat! Don't eat me!' he yowled. 'Oh well," said Yellowfang. 'I guess I'll have to let you free again. I wouldn't want your mom to be angry.' Oakkit took the chance and bolted out of the den into the nursery, where he cuddled with his mom for the rest of the day."

"Oakkit was silly!" laughed Rosekit. "Yellowfang wouldn't eat him! Why would he think that?"

"It must've been the time that it happened. Cats were lest trustworthy, and it was harder to believe someone."

"Oh," said Rosekit. She started to laugh again.

"I'm glad we live now," said Skunkkit. "Cats are nicer now."

Whitefur laughed. "I suppose we do live in a good time."

"Speak for yourself," grumbled Burrcoat, but nobody cared to listen to him.

Brighteye entered the den and whispered to Dawnfeather, "It's ready. You can let them out now."

Dawnfeather smiled. "Alright, kits. Let's let the elders rest. Say goodbye!"

"Bye!" said the kits.

"Oh boy!" said Skunkkit. "I can't wait to explore more!"


	6. Chapter 5

"I wanna go to the fresh-kill pile!" shouted Skunkkit.

"That's no fun! I wanna go over there!" said Rosekit, pointing her nose in a random direction.

"What's over there?" asked Skunkkit.

"Uh… bushes!"

"Okay! You go over there, and I'll go to the fresh-kill pile."

The kits ran off in opposite ways. Dawnfeather sighed. She turned to Brighteye and said, "You follow Rosekit. I'll get Skunkkit."

"K," said Brighteye. They ran off towards the kittens.

"Why did you want to go to the bushes?" Brighteye asked Rosekit when he reached her.

"Because they have leaves," said Rosekit casually. "Leaves are good." Brighteye couldn't find a way to argue with her logic.

Brighteye watched Skunkkit and Dawnfeather. Skunkkit lay in the fresh-kill pile, pretending to be Oakkit, and Dawnfeather picked her up and carried her away while she play-fought her mother.

Brighteye laughed. He heard a chewing noise behind him and his whiskers twitched. He turned around and found Rosekit eating something.

"What're you eating?" he asked.

"Um… a leaf," she said.

"No! You don't eat leaves! Spit it out, now!"

 _*Gulp*_

Brighteye sighed. "You need to understand. Some leaves can really hurt you and give you a stomachache!"

"Hm," said Rosekit. "That one didn't." She bit off another leaf and started to eat it.

"Argh!" Brighteye groaned. He jumped onto Rosekit, pinned her down without hurting her, and opened her mouth. He scooped the leaf out of her mouth while she complained. When there was nothing left in her mouth, he backed off and started to clean his paw.

Rosekit hopped to her feet and stuck her tongue out at Brighteye. She tried to act natural by clawing at a branch. She gave Brighteye a quick scowl and then sprinted away. Brighteye followed behind, walking until he realized where she was headed: the cliff. He bolted towards Rosekit, but he wasn't fast enough.

Rosekit began to climb the barrier he'd made, but it was tall and prickly, so she fell off. She jumped onto the small wall again and tumbled back off again. She growled in frustration and started to study the wall, looking for weak points.

Brighteye watched in relief. _"Good, I made it sturdy enough,"_ he thought. He heard small, rapid paw steps behind him and turned to find Skunkkit running straight for the barrier. Dawnfeather jogged behind her, keeping a close eye on her kit but smiling warmly. Brighteye smiled back as if Rosekit was being a little angel.

Skunkkit pounced on the wall and tried to scramble up it. Rosekit used Skunkkit's back to climb a little higher, but ended up just making both of them fall.

"That's a strong barrier," Dawnfeather laughed.

 _"I'm glad she isn't as stressed anymore,"_ Brighteye thought. The kits still clawed at the barrier, trying to find a foot-hold or a hole to fit through. Finally, Skunkkit decided to find a different way onto the cliff. She walked around the barrier to the side of the cliff. She got into a pouncing position, her tail swishing in the air, and jumped. She landed almost on the cliff and scrambled to find a hold.

Brighteye leapt forward and grabbed Skunkkit by the scruff of the neck when Dawnfeather said, "Put her down. If she can figure out how to get onto the cliff, she should be smart enough not to fall off of it."

Brighteye let go of Skunkkit, who immediately pulled herself onto the cliff. She walked around with pride and looked down at Rosekit.

"Look where I got," she boasted. Rosekit scowled and walked to where Skunkkit had jumped from. She got into the same position and jumped. She didn't make it and tumbled down a little onto the ground. Skunkkit laughed at her.

Rosekit growled and tried again. This time, she made it onto the cliff. She tackled Skunkkit and the two rolled around in the dirt.

Brighteye and Dawnfeather hopped onto the cliff. "You sure you're okay with this?" Brighteye asked.

Dawnfeather frowned for a second. "I'm sure they'll be fine if we keep a close eye on them."

The two followed the kits up the cliff to where Tallrock sat. They stayed close to the side of the cliff with bushes, which helped Dawnfeather relax.

At the highest point of the cliff, Rosekit called to her mom, "Look! I can eat leaves without getting a stomachache!"

"No!" said Brighteye. "I just told you not to eat those!"

"It's okay," Dawnfeather whispered to Brighteye. "Those leaves are fine to eat. Watch what I do."

She turned to Rosekit and said, "You can eat those leaves, Rosekit. They won't hurt you."

"Oh, okay," said Rosekit. She spat the leaf out and walked away.

"Whoa!" said Skunkkit. "You can see so far from up here!"

Dawnfeather turned around with her eyes wide open with fear. She found Skunkkit on the very edge of the cliff, directly in front of the gaping, breath-taking drop. Skunkkit looked across the entire camp, her front toes over the edge. Her face was in awe, completely unaware of the danger she was in.

"Skunkkit! No!" screamed Dawnfeather. She leapt at Skunkkit and tried to grab her by the tail. Her scream made Skunkkit jump a little. She landed and slipped. Her legs scrambled desperately to hold onto the cliff, but all her claws met was cruel dust that flew out of the way, laughing at her as she lost all grip.

Dawnfeather watched in unbearable fear as Skunkkit hit a rock and fell straight down. Skunkkit had no time to yowl; she could only point her feet down as the ground crept up on her. Dawnfeather's legs were stuck to the ground. She couldn't get any part of her to do anything except shiver with paralyzing adrenaline.

The fall seemed to never end. Unstopping, unmoving moments of Skunkkit clawing at the air in desperation for a way to stop. The ground baring its teeth and claws for Skunkkit's landing. The unbearable yowl that Dawnfeather found coming from her own mouth.

With a thud that Dawnfeather believed could be heard in StarClan, Skunkkit met the ground. She squealed as her legs gave out and she landed on her side.

Dawnfeather jumped from the top of the cliff and landed perfectly. "Go get Rainpelt!" she yelled to Specklefoot, who had just realized what was going on. She dropped her fresh-kill and sprinted to the medicine cat's den.

Brighteye grabbed Rosekit and carried her down the cliff, hopping off at the bottom and dropping her next to her mother.

Rainpelt rushed out of her den and regarded Skunkkit with a concerned, but calm, face. Skunkkit tried to get to her feet, but her hind leg gave way and she fell back down.

"Is she okay?" Dawnfeather was hyperventilating fiercely.

Rainpelt touched her nose to Skunkkit's leg, which made Skunkkit flinch.

"It looks like a bruise. If it was broken, she wouldn't have been able to feel that," she said. "Bring her to my den and I'll get some poppy seeds for the pain."

Dawnfeather grabbed Skunkkit and carefully brought her to Rainpelt's den. She laid Skunkkit on one of the nests, making the kit squeak.

Blackpaw, Dawnfeather's apprentice, brought Skunkkit a leaf of a few poppy seeds, which Skunkkit ate without question.

Rainpelt observed Skunkkit's body, looking for other injuries. "There's a bad cut here, which may be a scar," she said, touching behind her ear. "Otherwise, the only problem is that bruise. Blackpaw, bring me some cobwebs and a bit of chervil. We should make sure the cut doesn't get infected."

"I have a scar?" asked Skunkkit.

"Not yet," replied Rainpelt. "We'll see if we can fix it."

Blackpaw came back with a mouthful of chervil and a pawful of cobweb. He chewed the chervil and spread it on the cut. Then Rainpelt expertly covered the cut with the cobwebs to keep the chervil and blood from escaping.

"That takes care of that. As for the bruise, there's nothing we can do at the moment," said Rainpelt.

Dawnfeather began to shake violently. "Oh, StarClan! My baby! I thought I was going to lose you!" She embraced Skunkkit and started to bawl.

Rainpelt regarded the queen with only a slightly concerned expression. "Blackpaw," she said. "Get Dawnfeather some thyme, please." Blackpaw nodded his head and fetched the leaves.

As Dawnfeather ingested the leaves, her head began to fall to the side. In a few seconds, she was asleep on Skunkkit's hind. The kit shifted so her leg wasn't in contact with anything and fell asleep, too.

"That was quick," said Blackpaw.

"She was in a rush for a while, so she used up all her energy," said Rainpelt. Blackpaw nodded and began to pick up a pile of leaves he'd accidentally tipped over.

Brighteye sat outside with Rosekit next to him. Turning to Rosekit, he said, "Maybe you should go wait for Barrenfoot with your family."

"Can't I wait out here?" whined Rosekit.

"No. Get in there," said Brighteye sternly. His face showed a hint of anger and his fur bristled slightly.

Rosekit noticed this and was suddenly afraid of an angry Brighteye. "Okay," she whimpered. She walked over to Dawnfeather and Skunkkit and lay next to them. She couldn't sleep, but she stayed still so she didn't disturb the other two.

"Well, that was scary," Brighteye breathed. He crawled out to the sleeping grounds to catch a quick nap.

 **I have a special request. The current pic for this story is a black & white picture of the real-life kitten Skunkkit is based off of. If somebody wants to draw a picture of these cats, it would be so insanely appreciated. You can send an image to **_**brightblocks42**_ **at gmail** **, and PM me so I know. Thank you!**

 **"Hey! Brighteye here! You can now download the first five chapters of this story, along with the cat chart and a cool name generator you could use to name your kits. Brightblocks42 can't put links on here, so he'll e-mail the address to you if you PM him** **. He says he'll have another of these once we've reached 10 chapters and at least 500 views! See you then!"**


	7. Chapter 6

Barrenfoot walked into the camp bouncing and carrying a rabbit in his mouth. He set the prey on the fresh-kill pile, looked around, and walked to the nursery.

"Dawnfeather? Are you here?"

When he found the nursery empty, his whiskers twitched and he glanced around the camp in confusion.

Unable to find his kin anywhere, he walked over to Pinestripe and Adderheart, who sat eating their midday meal. "Do you know where Dawnfeather and the kits are?" he asked the warriors.

"Oh! You haven't heard yet?" said Adderheart. Barrenfoot shook his head.

"They're in the Rainpelt's den," Adderheart said, pointing his nose to the crevice in the rocks.

"Why? What happened?" asked Barrenfoot rapidly.

"Um… Pinestripe, you wanna tell him?" said Adderheart.

Pinestripe licked his lips quickly. "Let's just say that Skunkkit took a fall." He prepared himself for an outburst from Barrenfoot.

Barrenfoot didn't have time, however. He was already halfway to the medicine cat's den, running as fast as he could, his WindClan-strengthened legs bursting ahead at top speed.

He stopped at the entrance and poked his head through. "Rainpelt? What happened? How's Skunkkit?"

Rainpelt stepped calmly to the deputy and meowed, "Judging by that last question and the rush you're in, you already know what happened. As for Skunkkit, she toughed through the fall with only a cut and a large bruise."

Barrenfoot looked at his sleeping family and sighed relief. It was impossible to tell that there was anything wrong with Skunkkit from where he stood, and they all seemed relaxed.

"I don't think there'll be any permanent damage on that leg, hon. She may have a small scar behind her ear, but it won't be anything out of the ordinary here," said Rainpelt.

"Where did she fall from?" asked Barrenfoot.

"The very top of the cliff, as high as she could get," said Rainpelt.

Barrenfoot's ears perked up. _"Of course it was at the top,"_ he thought.

Dawnfeather started to stir. She opened her eyes and glared at her mate.

"I told you so."

Barrenfoot ducked his head. "Yeah. Sorry," he mumbled.

Dawnfeather scowled at him a bit longer. Then she burst into sudden laughter. "You stupid dung-for-brains! Listen to me next time!" she said. "I'm just glad Skunkkit's okay."

Barrenfoot smiled and curled up against his family. He snuggled next to his kits carefully so they lay between him and Dawnfeather. Rosekit stretched her front legs and laid them on Skunkkit's face. Dawnfeather purred, and Barrenfoot joined her.

"Very sweet," said Rainpelt. "But now you're taking up half the den."

* * *

Barrenfoot felt a paw pat him on the head a few times. He opened his eyes a crack and found Blackpaw trying to wake him up without disturbing him.

"Uh, Barrenfoot? Rainpelt says you need to set up the night and morning patrols, now," the apprentice said.

Barrenfoot stretched with a groan. He nodded to the young cat. Blackpaw smiled and walked out of the den.

Barrenfoot stood up and stretched his hind legs. He heard a few satisfying cracks in his back and grunted, "I must be getting pretty old." He chuckled and padded out. He took one last look at his family behind him and saw the back of Skunkkit's ear. It was covered in cobweb and a chewed-up plant, but it didn't seem irritated. His whiskers twitched with both sadness and hope. He stepped into the evening light to find half of the clan already gathered in front of Tallrock.

He climbed up the cliff to Tallrock and stayed close to the side with bushes. Looking over the edge suddenly made him dizzy, but he acted unfazed and hopped onto the giant boulder.

He called the clan in for the announcement and the second half soon arrived. "For morning patrol we'll need Specklefoot, Rabbitpaw, and Adderheart on the lake path. For the horse-place path, we'll need Hollowclaw and Brighteye."

He was interrupted by Thornstar, who yowled attention. "I'd like to join that patrol," he said to Barrenfoot.

"Are you sure?" said Barrenfoot. "I can't deny you, but are you sure you want to do a patrol?"

"These old legs don't move as fast as they used to, but I need to be there for my clan. StarClan came to me in a dream and told me to join a patrol."

"Well, I suppose we can't argue with StarClan. You can go with Hollowclaw and Brighteye."

Thornstar nodded and walked back to the elders' den to sit with Whitefur.

Barrenfoot heard Hollowclaw whisper to Sunpelt next to him, "Thornstar's a little out there, isn't he."

"I heard that, Hollowclaw," said Barrenfoot. He reached his head down and whispered, "But yeah, a little."

* * *

Brighteye was lying on the sleeping grounds, lightly snoring. He felt a tongue licking his face and opened his eyes. He found Rosekit sitting in front of him.

"Brighteye?" the kit said. "I'm bored."

"You're supposed to be asleep."

"No, I'm supposed to be playing, but Skunkkit won't get up like she usually does."

"Why would you want to play now?"

"Because we always play when the sun starts to rise. Except for today. And now I'm bored."

"So you want me to get up to play with you," grumbled Brighteye as he stretched.

"Yeah! You can chase me, and then if you catch me, then I'll chase you!"

"And what if you catch me?"

"Then I win!"

Brighteye thought for a second. "I fail to see your logic."

Rosekit's whiskers twitched. "That's how Skunkkit and I always play."

"Alright," Brighteye groaned. He stretched again and got on his feet.

"Yay! Chase me!"

Rosekit bolted off.

Brighteye called after her, "Wait up! I can't run that fast this early!"

* * *

Hollowclaw, Brighteye, and Thornstar walked the edge of WindClan territory near the horse-place. The sun beat down more intensely that usual, making the cats' backs dripping in sweat. Not a single sound had been heard the entire patrol. All prey was hiding from the heat, and the cats didn't have the energy to start up a conversation.

They trudged along across the scorched ground and kept an eye out for any trouble. At one point, they reached a small puddle, which they quickly lapped up together.

Finally, Brighteye said, "Well, this has been pretty eventful. Thornstar, do you know why StarClan sent you on this patrol?"

"They said something about a carrot," said Thornstar.

"What's a carrot?" asked Hollowclaw.

"I dunno," said Thornstar, starting to lose patience in the heat.

They dragged their feet across their territory a little longer. Suddenly, Thornstar's ears perked up.

"I may be old," said Thornstar. "But my ears are just as good as they always were. Follow me." He ran under the fence at the edge of WindClan territory and to the old Twoleg barn. The two warriors chased after him.

Brighteye kept his ears perked up, and he heard a faint shouting coming from inside the barn. As they got closer, he could tell it was a she-cat, screaming "Help!" at the top of her lungs. The patrol bolted for the barn as fast as they could (which wasn't very fast because one of them was old, one was slow, and one was fat).

When they reached the barn, they looked inside its huge entrance to find a light orange cat against a corner with three cats crawling up to her threateningly. She saw Thornstar at the doorway and shouted, "Help me!" one last time before the cats pounced.

 **This chapter's split up into four sections because I have two plots sort of going at the same time and I had to alternate between the two. Hopefully, this doesn't bother you too much.**


	8. Chapter 7

"Help!" was the orange she-cats last cry as she fell underneath the attacking cats. She tried desperately to claw at the rogues, but her swollen belly left her defenseless.

Brighteye, Hollowclaw, and Thornstar leapt into action. Their claws and teeth bared, they pounced on the rogues. They hissed and spat, trying to intimidate their opponents. One of the cats, a light orange-brown cat who looked younger than the other two, recoiled and got out of the way.

Brighteye chased after the younger cat, who scrambled in the dirt to get away. They ran around the barn, jumping over rocks and sticks swiftly. Eventually, the cat turned around and hissed at Brighteye. Brighteye didn't stop and ran straight into the cat, making them both dizzy for a moment. Brighteye recovered first and jumped onto the cat's back.

Brighteye pinned the cat to the ground. He bit the cat's ear and neck, trying to leave scars without killing. He held the cat down strongly, but the cat escaped by kicking Brighteye with his hind legs rapidly.

Brighteye hopped to the side, trying not to get pinned down. The cat fell forward onto Brighteye and dug his claws into Brighteye's back. Brighteye yowled in pain. He bit the cat in the side of the neck until he tasted blood. The cat held on just as tightly, and the two dug into each other unforgivingly.

Finally, the cat clawed out of Brighteye's bite. He hissed one last time and limped to a pile of hay to stay.

Brighteye mercifully left him and joined the fight with the last two cats.

Hollowclaw battled the dark brown cat and Thornstar attacked the orange-brown cat, who was the strongest and seemed to be the leader. The orange she-cat hid in the corner, avoiding the fight.

Thornstar, who's old body still hadn't lost its strength, seemed to be doing fine. Brighteye jumped in to help Hollowclaw with the dark brown cat.

He scratched the dark brown cat's side and saw blood start to drip out. The cat recoiled and turned to face Brighteye, which let Hollowclaw smack his right ear and eye. The cat didn't give up as his ally had. He ignored Hollowclaw and jumped on Brighteye, pinning him down. Brighteye tried to bite the cat's legs and face, but they were just out of reach.

Hollowclaw head-butted the cat in the side and pushed him off of Brighteye. The cat rolled and hopped back onto his feet. He scratched Hollowclaw's snout. Brighteye took the moment to reach and pull the cat's front legs out from under him. The cat tumbled down onto his face. Hollowclaw was about to slice the cat's back of the neck when a horrifying screech made them all stop and look.

Thornstar and the other leader both had their claws at the other's throats. They pushed and slit their throats, letting their lives scream out of their mouths. They tumbled onto the ground next to each other and gazed into each other's eyes as they slipped away from their bodies.

"No!" screamed Brighteye. He sprinted to Thornstar's side and tried to lick the wound, but it was too serious. Tears began to well up in Brighteye's eyes. Thornstar was still breathing, but his gasps were jolty and uneven.

Hollowclaw crawled next to Brighteye and sat down. He was crying lightly, already understanding it was too late.

"Brighteye, Hollowclaw," whispered Thornstar between gasps. "Tell Whitefur… that I love her. And…"

"Yes?" said Brighteye.

"…Tell Burrcoat…"

Brighteye nodded urgently.

"…To stop complaining."

Brighteye had no response.

"Life's no fun… if you can't make fun of it," Thornstar smiled. The light faded out of his eyes. He saw Brighteye's concern and closed his eyes to save the warrior the trauma. He chuckled and coughed pathetically. His breathing slowed, then stopped.

Brighteye looked up at StarClan and yowled furiously. _"Look out, StarClan. Thornstar's coming,"_ he thought. Tears streamed down his cheeks and landed on the dusty ground. He laid his head on Thornstar's and drew short, rapid breaths in uncontrollably. He felt a paw on his back.

"Let's get him back home," said Hollowclaw. Brighteye could see the same torment in his eyes, but the older warrior held the emotion in. Brighteye nodded shakily and looked up at the other cats. They stared at Brighteye with concerned eyes, even the rogues who'd been attacking him.

The younger rogue stepped up to Brighteye. "I'm so sorry," he said, looking down. "We didn't want to kill any cat. We were just-" He was stopped by a glare from Brighteye.

Brighteye shook his head. "Why aren't you sad? Your leader is dead."

"He was only a cat we could follow to get food. We'd do what he wanted, and he'd give us what we wanted."

"Was it his idea to do this?"

"Yes! Yes, I promise. He wanted to claim the barn as ours."

"What was his name?"

"Sam. He wasn't the nicest leader, but he was strong."

Brighteye looked at the dead cat and kicked a bit of dust on his face. The younger rogue glanced at his dead leader and gulped, but said nothing.

"What about you?" said Hollowclaw. "Who are you?"

' "I'm Bud, and he's Blue," said the young rogue.

"And you?" asked Hollowclaw, turning to the she-cat.

"I'm Carrot," she replied quietly.

Brighteye gasped. "You were the one StarClan told Thornstar about!"

Carrot looked like she was about to ask who StarClan was, but she changed her mind. There were a few awkward seconds of silence.

Finally, Hollowclaw said, "Should we get Thornstar back to camp now?" Brighteye nodded.

"Let me help!" said Bud. "It's really the least I could do. I'm really sorry."

Brighteye looked at Hollowclaw, who nodded agreement. Brighteye grabbed one side of Thornstar's neck, and Hollowclaw grabbed the other. Bud lifted Thornstar from behind and walked behind the cats, his head ducked down from the weight. Carrot followed.

Blue watched the cats leave. He took one last look at Sam and decided to follow them. He kept his distance, but made sure the warriors at front knew he was with them.

Brighteye looked sadly, but confidently, ahead of him. He could remember Thornstar's last words, his constant smile, his awkward sense of humor. Thornstar was the happiest cat Brighteye had ever met. He seemed able to find the best out of every situation. He'd died with a smile on his lips, and that smile found its way onto Brighteye's.


End file.
